If your AirPods keep disconnecting from iPhone during phone calls, you're not alone. Although Apple is trying to stay quite about this issue, there's already a big thread about it on the company's public communities forum. Many affected posters claim AirPods disconnect from their iPhone during phone calls 30+ percent of the time.
Other folks have noted that AirPods also keep disconnecting during long calls. The problem appears to be limited to phone calls because none of the posters reported being plagued by it when listening to music.
Possible Bluetooth interference from Apple Watch could be the main culprit here because most or all of the affected users own Apple's wearable device, more so given that unpairing the watch from iPhone seems to resolve the issue.
Our reader Kevin, who gave us a heads-up about the problem, says he spoke to Apple's senior advisors who then retrieved diagnostic logs from his iPhone. “At this point nobody from Apple can provide any updates on the issue, their engineering team is still trying to find out what's the cause,” he told us.
AirPods are very convenient when they work. That being said, disconnecting from phone calls must be very annoying for affected users, especially when AirPods disconnect during an important call. We suspect this is most likely a software issue that should be addressed in a future software update.
Our own Sébastien has noticed that AirPods are especially susceptible to crackly sound as audio is being streamed from a host device to the earphones. If you, too, have experienced this problem with your AirPods or any of Apple's W1-equipped Bluetooth headsets like the new Beats3 Solo, my colleague Anthony has some sound troubleshooting tips for you.
Thanks, Kevin!
Source: Apple